Alaska
The Church organized a new stake in Alaska on March 20th. The Palmer Alaska Stake was organized from a division of the Wasilla Alaska Stake. Information on which wards are assigned to the new stake remains unavailable. Prior to the division of the stake, the Wasilla Alaska Stake had 15 wards - the largest number of wards of any stake in the world.
There are now eight stakes in Alaska.
Australia
The Church organized a new stake in the Brisbane area on March 20th. The Ipswich Australia West Stake was organized from a division of the Ipswich Australia Stake. The new stake includes the following six wards: the Brassall, Darling Heights, Karana Downs, Somerset, Toowoomba, and Warwick Wards. The Brisbane Australia Centenary Stake was also realigned with the Ipswich Australia Stake. There are now 11 stakes in the greater Brisbane metropolitan area.
There are now 39 stakes and eight districts in Australia.
Brazil
The Church organized a new stake in the Fortaleza metropolitan area on March 20th. The Maracanaú Brazil North Stake was organized from a division of the Maracanaú Brazil Stake. The new stake includes the following five wards: the Jereissati 2nd, Maracanaú 1st, Novo Maracanaú, Novo Oriente 1st, and Novo Oriente 2nd Wards. There are now 15 stakes in the Fortaleza metropolitan area.
There are now 259 stakes and 38 districts in Brazil.
Ghana
The Church organized a new stake in southwestern Ghana on March 20th. The Mpintsin Ghana Stake was organized from a division of the Takoradi Ghana Stake and the Ghana Cape Coast Mission. The new stake includes the following five wards and four branches: the Kojokrom, Mpintsin 1st, Mpintsin 2nd, Nketsiakrom, and Sofokrom Wards, and the Daboase, Eshiem, Essipon, and Shama Branches. The Takoradi Ghana Stake numbered among the stakes in West Africa that has taken the longest to divide since the stake's organization in 1997.
There are now 16 stakes and 11 districts in Ghana.
Kenya
The Church organized a new stake in Nairobi on March 20th. The Nairobi Kenya East Stake was organized from a division of the Nairobi Kenya Stake. The new stake includes the following seven wards: the Kayole 1st, Kayole 2nd, Lucky Summer, Nairobi 1st, Nairobi 2nd, South B, and Zimmerman Wards. The organization of the new stake is a major milestone for the Church in Kenya and East Africa. Nairobi is the first city in East Africa to have had two LDS stakes organized. The new stake in Kenya is the Church's fourth stake to be created in the entire region of East Africa. With the organization of the new stake in Nairobi, prospects have improved for the announcement of a temple in Nairobi or Kampala within the foreseeable future.
There are now two stakes and four districts in Kenya.
Texas
The Church organized a new stake in the Dallas area on March 20th. The Sherman Texas Stake was organized from a division of the Allen Texas, Frisco Texas Shawnee Trail, and McKinney Texas Stakes. The new stake includes the following seven wards: the Bonham, Celina, Durant, Melissa 1st, Melissa 2nd, Sherman 1st, and Sherman 2nd Wards. There are now 20 stakes in the Dallas/Fort Worth metropolitan area.
There are now 69 stakes and three districts in Texas.
Ukraine
The Church organized a new district in western Ukraine. The L'viv Ukraine District was organized from the L'viv Ukraine Mission. The new district includes the following seven branches: the Chernivets'ka, Ivano-Frankivs'ka, Khmel'nyts'ka, L'viv Ukraine District, L'vivs'ka, Luts'ka, and Rivnens'ka Branches. The new district is the Church's first district in western Ukraine ever organized, and is the first district to ever operate within the Ukraine L'viv Mission.
There is now one stake and three districts in Ukraine.
minor clarification on the new Stake in Kenya...
ReplyDelete"The existing Nairobi Stake was divided into the newly formed Nairobi East Stake and the Nairobi West Stake." (http://www.mormonnewsroom.co.ke/article/nairobi-stake-division)
The Nairobi West Stake will include :
1. Mountain View Ward,
2. Riruta Ward,
3. Upper Hill Ward,
4. Ongata Rongai Ward,
5. Athi River Ward,
6. Langata Branch, and
7. Kitengela Branch.
(It also appears that the Westlands Ward, formed from the Mountain View Ward, has been folded into another congregation.)
The Nairobi East Stake will include:
1. Zimmerman Ward,
2. Lucky Summer Ward,
3. Kayole 1st Ward
4. Kayole 2nd Ward,
5. Nairobi 1st Ward,
6. Nairobi 2nd Ward, and
7. South B Ward.
Jadmaire Ndivo will remain the Stake President in the new Nairobi East Stake. One of his counselors was his previous counselor in the Nairobi Stake. George Munene, the other previous counselor, is the Stake President of the new Nairobi West Stake.
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ReplyDeleteGood to see Alaska seeing progress as it is a small population state but from what I understand is dynamic in growth. It has its own mission which probably is on the low end for missionary per person but because of size must be difficult to cover many communities. I wonder which larger towns (per Alaska) are not covered.
ReplyDeleteBetween the 2000 census and the 2010 census the church became the largest church in 3 or 4 counties in Alaska:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.bing.com/images/search?q=largest+church+by+county+map+in+america&view=detailv2&qpvt=largest+church+by+county+map+in+america&id=F427A7AF9DE0983AB05C8EF9D74648FEBDD1934E&selectedIndex=0&ccid=SRgHTJm0&simid=608054133133871246&thid=OIP.M4918074c99b4e3ea672518b574ce633ao0&ajaxhist=0
There are lots of larger towns that are not yet covered, most of them being near a city with a ward of branch. I may gauge things differently than you guys, but I only factor in where the chapels are. Most of them are Census Designated Places (CDP) that are unincorporated areas. Some of these places might not be accurate. This is my list in my database of all towns over 1,000 people that does not have a chapel. Some ward boundaries are inaccurate on LDS Maps, for instance, if we were to go by the boundaries on LDS Maps, there would be no people living in the Skagway Branch or the Delta Junction Ward.
ReplyDeleteANCHORAGE ALASKA STAKE
Akutan - 1,027 (Anchorage Bush Branch)
Hooper Bay - 1,014 (Anchorage Bush Branch)
FAIRBANKS ALASKA STAKE
Badger CDP - 19,482 (Badger Road Ward)
College CDP - 12,964 (Fairbanks 5th Ward)
Steele Creek CDP - 6,662 (Fairbanks 3rd Ward)
Chena Ridge CDP - 5,791 (Fairbanks 6th Ward)
Eielson Air Force Base - 5,400 (Eielson Ward)
Farmers Loop CDP - 4,853 (Fairbanks 3rd Ward)
Goldstream CDP - 3,557 (Fairbanks 6th Ward)
Ester CDP - 2,422 (Fairbanks 6th Ward)
Deltana CDP - 2,251 (Tok Branch)* - most likely in Delta Junction Ward
Prudhoe Bay CDP - 2,174 (North Slope Branch)
Tok CDP - 1,258 (Tok Branch)
JUNEAU ALASKA STAKE
Metlakatla CDP - 1,375 (Ketchikan Ward)
PALMER ALASKA STAKE***Boundaries unknown
Lakes CDP - 8,364 (Cottonwood Ward)
Fishhook CDP - 4,679 (Fishhook Ward)
Butte CDP - 3,246 (Pioneer Peak Ward)
Lazy Mountain CDP - 1,479 (Lazy Mountain Ward)
Sutton-Alpine CDP - 1,447 (Fishhook Ward)
Farm Loop CDP - 1,028 (Fishhook Ward)
SOLDOTNA ALASKA STAKE
Kalifornsky CDP - 7,850 (Kalifornsky Beach Ward)
Sterling CDP - 5,617 (Sterling Ward)
Nikiski CDP - 4,493 (Kenai Ward)
Ridgeway CDP - 2,022 (Soldotna Ward)
Bear Creek CDP - 1,956 (Seward Branch)* - technically, the chapel is in Bear Creek
Fritz Creek CDP - 1,932 (Homer Ward)
Anchor Point CDP - 1,930 (Homer Ward)
Diamond Ridge CDP - 1,802 (Homer Ward)
Kodiak Station CDP - 1,301 (Kodiak Ward)
Cohoe CDP - 1,168 (Kalifornsky Beach Ward)
WASILLA ALASKA STAKE
Tanaina CDP - 8,197 (Memory Lake Ward)
Meadow Lakes CDP - 7,570 (Willow Ward)
Big Lake CDP - 3,350 (Big Lake Ward)
Houston - 1,912 (Willow Ward)
Susitna North CDP - 1,260 (Willow Ward)
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ReplyDeleteVery cool stats. Thanks. I wish my home state of Indiana had smaller towns like this not covered. Gary is a big city that has few if any chapels. I should check that. I just talked to a bishop over Hammond (Munster) and that could use more chapels, too.
ReplyDeleteI have heard that after the Palmer Alaska Stake was split off, construction would begin on a new stake center in the Palmer area. I have no idea where this chapel will be. It could be in Butte (Pioneer Peak Ward), which is a pretty sizable farm town. It's also where the Bishops' Warehouse is for the region. A chapel here could also take in the Lazy Mountain Ward. Another possible place is north of Palmer, in the Farmer's Loop area, which would most likely only house the Fishhook Ward, unless it also takes in the Palmer Ward. I have thought about whether or not the YSA ward would be part of the Palmer Alaska Stake, considering the university is near Palmer, and the Chapel/Institute is nearby as well. The only issue would it would necessitate renaming the ward, because it would be geographically inconsistent. It is called the Susitna YSA Ward I guess after the Susitna River, or even the Little Susitna River. The Susitna River runs down from Talkeetna down past Willow and into the Inlet. The Little Susitna River goes from Hatcher's Pass (near Fishhook), and travels down through Houston and goes into the Inlet. The area the university is, according to Wikipedia and some maps, is called Gateway, another CDP that has several thousand people in it. The reason Gateway was not on my list is because there is a chapel within the CDP. A possible name for the YSA Ward could be the Trunk Road YSA Ward, because Trunk Road runs past the University, and it is road that most people know where it is. Other ideas could be Mat-Su Valley YSA Ward or Gateway YSA Ward (sorry for ranting).
ReplyDeleteHaving inconsistent names of YSA units is common. Until it was renaimed the Ann Arbor YSA Ward the HillvStreet Ward had gone about a decade having a name from a chapel location that no longer applied. There seems to be a trend where possible to give YSA units broadly recognizable names.
ReplyDeleteOn the counts of unreached places. I would use ward locations and missionary areas. Thus both Sterling Heights and its 130,000 and Shelby Twp and its 75, 000 become reached. Althogh Shelby Twp is probably under reached. Macomb Township Michigan's 60,000 I would count as unreached.
I got an email regarding more detail about the Palmer Alaska Stake:
ReplyDelete"The Palmer Alaska Stake was created on March 20, 2016. The new stake is comprised of the following wards which were previously part of the Wasilla Alaska Stake:
Colony Ward
Cottonwood Ward
Fishhook Ward
Lazy Mountain Ward
Matanuska Ward
Palmer Ward
Pioneer Peak Ward
Valdez Ward
The dividing line between the Palmer and Wasilla stake is the Seward Meridian Parkway. East of the dividing line is now part of the Palmer Stake. Those living west of the dividing line remain in the Wasilla Stake. Some of the Cottonwood ward that was west of Seward Meridian is now in the Wasilla Ward. A few of the other wards had a couple of families affected by the change."